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Tuesday, March 31, 2015

...is one of the hottest trends in cookbooks. Actually, they've been around for many years, but never in such proliferation. They are automatic best sellers, since the book can be flogged at the restaurant or TV show and since the chef ends up being a celebrity somewhere, doing guest cooking or catering or even turning up on the Food Network. Most of these books will certainly appeal to fans of the chef and/or the restaurant and/or the media personality. Many of the recipes in these books actually come off the menus of the restaurants involved. Occasionally, there will be, in these books, special notes or preps, or recipes for items no longer on the menu. Stories or anecdotes will be related to the history of a dish. But because most of these books are American, they use only US volume measurements for the ingredients; sometimes there is a table of metric equivalents, but more often there is not. I'll try to point this out. The usual shtick is "favourite recipes made easy for everyday cooks". There is also PR copy on "demystifying ethnic ingredients". PR bumpf also includes much use of the magic phrase "mouth-watering recipes" as if that is what it takes to sell such a book. I keep hearing from readers, users, and other food writers that some restaurant recipes (not necessarily from these books) don't seem to work at home, but how could that be? The books all claim to be kitchen tested for the home, and many books identify the food researcher by name. Most books are loaded with tips, techniques, and advice, as well as gregarious stories about life in the restaurant world. Photos abound, usually of the chef bounding about. The celebrity books, with well-known chefs or entertainers, seem to have too much self-involvement and ego. And, of course, there are a lot of food photo shots, verging on gastroporn. There are endorsements from other celebrities in magnificent cases of logrolling. If resources are cited, they are usually American mail order firms, with websites. Some companies, though, will ship around the world, so don't ignore them altogether. Here's a rundown on the latest crop of such books –

11.CAFE KITCHEN (Ryland Peters & Small, 2014, 160 pages, ISBN 978-1-84975-561-0, $24.95 US hard covers) is by Shelagh Ryan, who setup an Australian-style cafe (Lantana) in London in 2008. She's also got Salvation Jane and Ruby Dock cafes. These are some of the preps from those restaurants. It's arrangement by course, beginning with breakfasts/brunches, small bites, salads/soups, larger plates, and desserts. Expect Anzac cookies, crack cake (bananas, pineapple, cinnamon, pecans, cream cheese frosting), and apple bircher and almond muesli. Eighty recipes in all, mostly Australian-inspired. There is also Thai fish cakes with nahm jim dipping sauce, Asian chicken noodle salad, and spicy pork burger with mango salsa. Preparations have their ingredients listed in both metric and avoirdupois measurements. Solid cafe fare of simple ingredients, great to make at home. Quality/price rating: 87.

12.GOOD FAT COOKING (Rodale, 2014, 190 pages, ISBN 978-1-60961-552-9, $29.99 US hard covers) is by Franklin Becker, chef and partner in Little Beet, Beet Cafe, and Cast Iron restaurants in NYC. He was a diabetic and decided to improve his diet. He believes in healthy cooking with "friendly fat" such as olive oil, avocado oil, nut/seed oils, and seafood oils. Peter Kaminsky is the focusing food writer. The book is traditionally arranged by salads, soups, grains, seafood, poultry and meat, veggies, desserts, and finishing with "nibbles and noshes". His recipes showcase nuts and seeds for crunch, gluten-free grains for texture, avocados for silkiness, and seafood for healthy fat protein. Try his toasted kasha with mushrooms and scallions, quinoa tabbouleh with feta cheese and cucumber, seviche of snapper with avocado and cilantro, grilled striped bass with sweet peppers, or pan-roasted Brussels sprouts with southeast Asia flavours. Not your usual bistro food. While the 100 or so preparations have their ingredients listed in avoirdupois measurements, there are tables of metric equivalents. Quality/price rating: 88.

13.LOLA'S FOREVER (Ryland Peters & Small, 2014, 176 pages, ISBN 978-1-84975-565-8, $24.95 US hard covers) is by Lola's Team of Bakers, headed by Julia Head for the cupcakes and Robert Budwig for the cakes. They have made the preps suitable for home baking, and all tips and hints have been tested by Head. Lola's flagship store is in Selfridge's in London. Here are 73 recipes not only for cakes and cupcakes, but also for cupcake drinks, cookies and candies. You might want to try Earl Grey tea fruit loaf, apricot and pistachio flapjack, or chocolate cookie traybake, and high hat marshmallow cupcake, and custard cream cupcake. Just watch your diet. Preparations have their ingredients listed in both metric and avoirdupois measurements, but there is no table of equivalents. Quality/price rating: 86.

14.CARMINE'S CELEBRATES (St. Martin's Press, 2014, 272 pages, ISBN 978-1-250-04108-1, $29.99 US hard covers) is by Glenn Rolnick, the director of culinary operations for Alicart Restaurant Group which owns Carmine's in several different cities. Chris Peterson is the focusing food writer. There had previously been Carmine's Family-Style Cookbook. The food is southern Italian; the level is family-style. But here they go into celebration mode for Easter, Thanksgiving, Christmas. Rolnick has menus for these holidays and other events such as a cocktail party, game day, weekday special, sit-down dinner, and more. The book is arranged by course, beginning with cold apps, and then hot apps, salad, pasta, fish/seafood, meat/poultry, sides, and desserts. His primer includes notes on the Italian kitchen pantry and on menu suggestions. It is a pretty basic book with asparagus and fava bean salad with blue crab (in season), scallops and shrimp scarpariello, osso buco, tomato focaccia, and tiramisu. But a good book for fans of the restaurants. Preparations have their ingredients listed in avoirdupois measurements, but there is no table of metric equivalents. Quality/price rating: 85.

15.PARTY-PERFECT BITES (Ryland Peters & Small, 2014, 144 pages, ISBN 978-1-84975-568-9, $24.95 US hard covers) is by Milli Taylor, a London caterer who has a supper club called Milk & Sugar. Her book is all about finger food (sorry, only one asparagus recipe: asparagus filo cigars) and small bites. She's got about 100 recipes, all easy and quick to do. In addition, there are menu planners to help serve a variety of people and a selection of both hot and cold apps – all matched to the season, the celebration, and the venue. These include a formal drinks party, a casual drinks party, a festive winter drinks party, a vegetarian affair, and a gluten-free affair. Strewn throughout are the usual shortcuts, tips, hints and advice on parties. Typical preps are chestnuts and bacon, mini okonomiyaki, banana-hazelnut pancakes, beetroot and apple on crispbreads, prosciutto-pear-gorgonzola rolls, and churros. Something for everyone. Preparations have their ingredients listed in both metric and avoirdupois measurements. Quality/price rating: 88.

16.FUTURE CHEFS (Rodale, 2014, 276 pages, ISBN 978-1-62336-206-5, $24.99 US paper covers) is by Ramin Ganeshram, a chef and food writer who is also a TV food competition judge. Here she collates a selection of 150 recipes from young cooks all over USA. These come from tweens and teens, but have been curated and kitchen tested by Ganeshram. Each of the 39 gets a profile, and each already has a website. And there are more girls than boys. The book is arranged in traditional normal course order. Some interesting foods include eggplant pesto sandwich, bacon mac and cheese, turnips with beef brisket, kale Caesar salad, capresse salad, spinach smoothie, and zucchini fries. Preparations have their ingredients listed in avoirdupois measurements, but there is no table of metric equivalents. Worth a look. Quality/price rating: 85.

17.CHARCUTERIE; how to enjoy, serve and cook with cured meats (Ryland Peter & Small, 2014, 160 pages, ISBN 978-1-84975-567-2, $24.95 US hard covers) is by Miranda Ballard, who co-owns the UK ethical beef concern Muddy Boots with her husband, and have opened The Modern Meat Shop in London (although neither fact seems to appear in the book itself). Charcuterie and salumi are discussed, especially in the creation of a charcuterie board (French, Italian or Spanish). Layouts are noted, as well as choice of meats and sausages. The Italian board would have olives and crostini, as well as a pecorino and olive oil and sun-dried tomatoes. The French board would also have tapenade, baguette, and a soft cheese. The Spanish board would also have olives, marinated red peppers, rustic breads, Manchego cheese, and almonds. The the rest of the book concerns small bites, apps, salads, light lunches, larger dishes, and side dishes with accompaniments. Home curing is part of the primer. It is a good start. Presumably, you could also end the meal with a cheese board, although this is not discussed. Preparations have their ingredients listed in both metric and avoirdupois measurements. Quality/price rating: 89.

18.COOKING ALLERGY-FREE (Taunton Press, 2014, 266 pages, ISBN 978-1-62710-396-1, $29.95 US hard covers) is by Jenna Short, owner of shortbreadnyc.com (a boutique events company focusing on gluten-free, vegan, dairy-free, kosher, and sugar-free foods. She was also formerly sous chef at Bon Appetit magazine. Here she gives us 150 recipes, all easy and quick, and spiced up with flavours. Each prep is free of one or more of the most common food allergens, easily identified by icons which are also applied for GF, vegetarian and vegan. Everything here is also kosher. So it is an all-in-one book, useful for those families that have multiple allergies or lifestyles. Her primer deals largely with grocery shopping, pantry stocking, and kitchen strategies to maximize your time. As well, there are are menu suggestions for weeknight meals and parties. Arrangement of the preps is by traditional course; the index to recipes is by allergen. Typical preps include such as asparagus beef rolls with horseradish cream, which is useful for those who have six of the allergens. Preparations have their ingredients listed in avoirdupois measurements, but there are tables of metric equivalents. Quality/price rating: 88.

19.THE CHIA COOKBOOK (Ten Speed Press, 2014, 146 pages, ISBN 978-1-60774-664-5, $16.99 US paper covers) is by Janie Hoffman, founder of MammaChia, an organic line of chia-based foods and beverages. There have not been too many chia books lately, but this one is small but well-illustrated with upscale foods. Chia is a unique super-food, with the highest omega-3 content of any vegetarian source, more protein than soybeans, more fibre than flax seed, more calcium than milk, and more antioxidants than blueberries. Chia is already in my life, and here are more ways to use it in juices, smoothies, snacks, small bites, soups, salads, desserts and nibbles. There are even a few mains such as grilled veggie sandwich with chia dijon-balsamic spread, salmon en brioche with chia tzatziki, or Thai-style sweet and sour chicken thighs. There are lots of preps here for everybody – just dig in. Preparations have their ingredients listed in avoirdupois measurements, but there is are tables of metric equivalents. Quality/price rating: 89.

20.GREENS 24/7 (The Experiment, 2014, 176 pages, ISBN 978-1-61519-227-4, $19.95 US paper covers) is by Jessica Nadel, owner-baker of Oh My Bakeshop in Sudbury, Ontario, an organic vegan special order bakery. Here she presents more than 100 quick and easy vegan preps for leafy greens and other greens (peas, broccoli) – meant for every meal of the day plus desserts and snacks. Try one of eight green smoothies or kale in cornbread for brekkies. 40 greens are covered, including spirulina, kelp and zucchini. She begins with nutritional profiles and prep guides for each type, followed by the recipes (chocolate hazelnut avocado torte, pesto polenta fries, tropical green smoothie). She's got an international flavour as well, with spicing from India, Japan, Mexico and Italy. There is also nutritional data for each prep. Nadel has been blogging for almost four years at http://www.cupcakesandkale.ca/ Preparations have their ingredients listed in mostly avoirdupois measurements with some metric, but there is no table of equivalents. Quality/price rating: 87.

21.NEW GERMAN COOKING (Chronicle Books, 2014, 236 pages, ISBN 978-1-4521-2806-1, $40 US hard covers) is by Jeremy and Jessica Nolen, chef and pastry chef at Brauhaus Schmitz in Philadelphia. Drew Lazor is the focusing food writer-editor. Typically, new German cooking is marked by its lightness, refinement, big flavours, and more veggies. They've got about 100 recipes for the classics, all re-engineered (say the publisher). It is arranged by course, with brotzeit (breads) followed by salate, then suppen, fisch, geflugel (poultry), fleisch, gemuse (veggies), nudeln und knodel, pickles, condiments, and desserts. German titles include mandeltorte (almond-honey cake), apfelstrudel, kirschstrudel, lebkuchen, presskopf (headcheese), schnitzel and bratwurst. There is some history behind the dishes plus an explanation for the changes. At the end there is a resources list. Preparations have their ingredients listed mainly in avoirdupois measurements, but the desserts are scaled in both metric and American. There is no table of metric equivalents. Quality/price rating: 88.

Thursday, March 26, 2015

The Event: How Italy Does Italian; Italy at the table, 2015 tour in Toronto

The Venue: Liberty Grand

The Target Audience: importers, wine and food media, sommeliers.

The Availability/Catalogue: there were 18 wineries, about half of them already repped in Ontario and/or Quebec. The catalogue was first rate in its production, with explanations and correct listings for the most part.

The Quote/Background: The annual show visited Vancouver, Montreal and Toronto, promoting Italian foods and wines.

The Food: the delegation itself sponsored a polenta and meat stew hot plate with salads, and a range of desserts. After that, it was going from table to table and sampling a variety of cold cuts, cheese, olives and oils, pastas, and coffees. There was even a stand for bottled water (fizzy and flat varieties).

The Downside: there was too much food and wine.

The Upside: a good chance to taste some older wines, although pricing was vague.

Tuesday, March 24, 2015

The Event: Tasting and Lunch with Bill Hardy and the William Hardy series of wines.

The Venue: Canoe

The Target Audience: wine writers

The Availability/Catalogue: only 2 of the wines are in Ontario (see below): most of the others are in BC and PQ.

The Quote/Background: Bill Hardy spoke about 160 years of Hardy history and the thoughts behind each of the wines, his voice sailing over the noisy neighbouring tables. The wines spoke for themselves, although Bill contributed his points as Brand Ambassador and as the name behind the launch of the William Hardy series of wines. The winemaking seemed to emphasize a combination of new world and old world textures and structures.

-Hardy's Winemakers Rare Release Handpicked Shiraz 2008, $269.95 FOB, not available in Canada – very mute at first, took a long time to open up. Fruit from very old vines in McLaren, Clare and Frankland River. Six different Burgundian coopers' oak barrels were used. Power and potential are there but it needed a lot more time, despite being 7 years old. Twist top. 14.5% ABV.

*** GOOD -- Three Stars (85 – 87 in Quality/Price Rating terms):

-Hardy's William Hardy Sauvignon Blanc 2013, $23.25 BC only – new world middle palate (off-dry) with an old world finish (higher acid). Twist top, 12.5% ABV.

The Availability/Catalogue: these dishes will be at the show, as will the wines, and together they just represent a few of the food and wine treats at the Green Living Show.

The Quote/Background: The foods and wines at the show represent sustainable green living. In fact, the Green Living Show is North America's largest show dedicated to healthy and sustainable living. This year's show kicks off Earth Month, with experts, celebrities and 400 exhibitors. This is the sixth annual show (I still use a paper wallet from the first show!). Free admission IF you bring some e-waste OR show a TTC monthly pass.

The Beers and Wines: The preview offered 7 wines and 4 beers...retail prices were not listed.

The Food: According to a Guelph Food Waste Research Project in 2014, households produce 4.5 Kg of food waste a week, 60% of which was fresh fruits and veggies. One of the aims of the food area at the Green Living Show is to serve food that has been "underused" or "overlooked" in the kitchen. To this end, five food services provided engaging samples of their foods that are rarely found in supermarkets or end up in the bin -

-Hawthorne's Ricky Casipe did a complicated chicken chichurron crisp with carrot kimchi. It was delicious and so totally unexpected. My fave of the evening.

-Pegasus Hospitality Steffan Howard did an Ontario mushroom and kale stem hand pie that was delightful and made me want more (he also furnished the recipe, which uses mushroom and kale stems).

-Scout Canning's Charlotte Langley provided a Provencal soupe de poisson with rouille and croutons, another excellent entry that used leftover fish. It has been awhile since I've had freshly made soupe de poisson (I used to make it but gave it up because of the fish eyes).

-Urban Acorn's Marie Fitrion did a cured beef tongue slider with Haitian pikliz, using six-day pickled tongue that had been braised for six hours, and with brioche inspired buns. They also did a vegan bread pudding (not gluten-free) with ugly fruit compote.

Chimo! www.deantudor.com AND http://gothicepicures.blogspot.com AND https://twitter.com/gothicepicures

Dean Tudor, Ryerson University Journalism Professor EmeritusTreasurer, Wine Writers' Circle of CanadaLook it up and you'll remember it; screw it up and you'll never forget it.Creator of Canada's award-winning wine satire site at http://fauxvoixvincuisine.blogspot.com

Wednesday, March 18, 2015

By DEAN TUDOR, Gothic Epicures Writing deantudor@deantudor.com. Creator of Canada's award-winning wine satire site at http://fauxvoixvincuisine.blogspot.com. My Internet compendium "Wines, Beers and Spirits of the Net", a guide to thousands of news items and RSS feeds, plus references to wines, beers and spirits, has been at www.deantudor.com since 1994. My LCBO tastings are based on MVC (Modal Varietal Character); ratings are QPR (Quality-to-Price Ratio). Prices are LCBO retail. Only my top rated wines are here.

NOTE: The LCBO does NOT put out all of the wines of the release for wine writers or product consultants. Corked wines are not normally available for a re-tasting. It is getting more difficult to endorse wines under $20 for the simple reason that the LCBO does not release many of them into the Vintages program, ones that can be deemed to be worthy of your consideration. So I will now just ADD some "under $25" suggestions, along with point values.

1.Cave Spring Estate Bottled Chardonnay Musque 2013 VQA Beamsville Bench, +246579, $15.95: delightful peachy tones in that orange-muscat mode, good off-dry character but finishes dry. Best with food, such as a first course, but could be a pre-prandial sipper. 13.5% ABV. QPR: 89.

4.Chateau Bellevue La Foret 2011 Fronton, +354134, $13.95: once on the LCBO General List about five agents back, this wine has been a fave for the past 40 years in Ontario. The main grape is the Negrette, with cab franc and cab sauv and some syrah in the blend. This unusual blend works, great price, and 14.5% ABV of kick. QPR: 90.

Restaurants should consider offering these FINE VALUE wines at a $10 markup over retail; the wines are READY to enjoy right NOW. Consumers should buy these wines to bring to restaurants with corkage programs.

The Availability/Catalogue: A new company Ekialdeko Imports was formed to import this impressive cider from the Basque region of Spain.

The Quote/Background: The Zapiain family started the current business in 1950 as artisanal apple cider (called sagardoa, in the region) using cider-type apples, chosen from more than 30 types of Basque apples. It can be a dry apple wine, at about 6% ABV, but it does contain a small amount naturally carbonized gas for a 750mL bottle with a cork closure. It should be shaken to awake the gas and the natural sediment, and then poured from a height (like a sherry) into a glass, a few ounces at a time. Perhaps the "pommelier" might be best at this since the cider is only available from the agent at $10 a bottle, and there are limited quantities reserved mainly for restaurants such as Barque (which had the launch).

The Food: .. and you thought we were going to have BBQ? Barque offered a variety of Basque styled tapas!! Including cheese, white anchovies on toasts, smoked fish and roe on toasts, cold cuts, mussels, and other platters I could not reach across the expansive table (good thing, too). Excellent accompaniment.

The Downside: it was just one product to taste (which I have not done since 1986), but too tempting to resist. How many non-Canadian ciders do we get in Ontario?

The Availability/Catalogue: all wines are available through the agent Mellecey

The Quote/Background: Jerome Legras, head of sales, assists his family's ventures by speaking about his champagnes, based in Chouilly. The family has been producing wines for seven generations; they own vineyards in the Cote des Blancs and in the Aube, working with chardonnay (principally) and pinot noir. Everything is done by hand, and blended by only the family members. Aging is a minimum of three years. They bottle about 10,000 cases total a year.

The Availability/Catalogue: wines and foods were made available by sponsors.

The Quote/Background: The winter Carnivale from Italy is coming to Toronto in February 2016. This was the sponsorship media launch, co-ordinated by the Italian Chamber of Commerce of Ontario and L'Altra Italia (arts and culture). This was to be the Grand Masquerade Ball. Unfortunately, I had to leave early so I missed the Costume Parade and soprano Alessandra Paonessa.

The Wines: There were seven wines on offer, to sample (one was lost in transport)...

The Availability/Catalogue: according to the catalogue, wines were available at the LCBO and by Private Order (PO). The catalogue was nicely put together by winery with a separate index to the wines.

The Quote/Background: Mark Davidson discussed Australia's 200 years of winemaking, highlighting regional differences and traditions and what the future holds. Then we had a self-pour tasting to examine other bottles of wines from Australia.

The Availability/Catalogue: all wines are available at the wineries involved, but a few were also at the LCBO as noted below.

The Quote/Background: It had been 7.5 years since the last fruit wine tasting in Ontario. IT IS WORTH REPEATING my notes from that time for Monday, July 23, 2007 – "The Outer Limits of Ontario Wine; a tasting of 100% Ontario wine that is not currently VQA eligible from one of Ontario's recognized areas", as organized by the late Larry Paterson. All 212 wines from 40 different wineries were available at their respective winery, but only a handful of wines were distributed by the LCBO. The catalogue was a spreadsheet listing the names and prices, websites, email addresses, and so forth, as well as sugar levels. My strategy, to reduce palate fatigue, was to try just those fruit wines under SC 5 in sugar content. I missed a lot of good wines, but many sweet wines sell themselves. I began tasting alphabetically, and right away ran into some of the best fruit wines I have ever had – from Applewood Farm Winery in the Stouffville area. I started with their Crazy Eight Cider, a 100%

raspberry at 8.8%. The last time I had quality like this was when Lenz Moser sent us an Austrian Sparkling Raspberry wine in the previous century, under 10% alcohol. The intense raspberry flavours were phenomenal, and the mousse was certainly effervescent. I was blown away, enough to order five two-fours from www.applewoodfarmwinery.com.

A 341 mL bottle costs a mere $2.50 (includes deposit). It'll be my summer drink for the rest of the year. Later I went back to try the Pear Port 2002 (fortified to 18%, sugar code of 5, $12.95 for half a litre), another phenomenal wine of intense pear flavours; it was better than my usual all-time favourite pear sweetie, the St.Jorg Cellars Poire Royale from California. I also enjoyed an experimental Caramel Apple, the Strawberry Cider (10%, fresh strawberry nose and palate – not the usual cooked jam I experienced in many other strawb concoctions; $9.95 for 750 mL), and the Mac-Meade (sparkling wine from Macintosh apples and honey, same price). At Archibald Orchards Estate Winery, I tried the Hard Cider NV, 6.2%, sugar 3, $8.95 750 mL, off-dry in the finish, the nifty

Ida Red Oak Aged NV (12.1%, bone dry, $9.95, good oak consistency, almost like a chardonnay; I've still got some of their 1999 Ida red Oak Aged, which is still showing very well). The Birtch Farms and Estate Winery Oak Aged Macintosh 2004(11.5%, sugar 1, $13.95) had less oakiness but a more pronounced apple finish. Their Peach wine ($11.5%,

sugar 3, $12.95) was just peachy and slightly off-dry in the finish. Their Rhubarb 2005 (one of the more difficult wines to make) was 12%, sugar 3, $13.95, and reminiscent of a fine rhubarb jam. Coffin Ridge makes A Winey Pear 2006 ($14) which was made from wild pears. I also tried Cornerstone Estate Winery's Cherry Festival 2005 (13% ABV, sugar

3, $9.50 for half-litre), with its off-dry cherry intensity. And their Estate Apricot Wine 2004 (10.5% ABV, sugar 4, $9.50 for 500 mL) not unsurprisingly like a fine off-dry vidal. Their Strawberry Festival (12.5%, sugar 4, $9.50 for half-litre) was a bit light in taste, but it certainly was not jammy. Cox Creek Cellars Black Currant Back Home NV

($13% ABV, bone dry, $11.70) was oak aged, good price, and highly recommended – but it does need time to resolve the wood. Nevertheless, another underpriced wine value. Downey's Estate Winery Premium Gooseberry NV (14% ABV, bone-dry, $13.95) certainly tasted like gooseberry without the jamminess, but it was also reminiscent of sauvignon blanc. My fave gooseberry wine is from Hoodsport in Washington State. Kawartha Country Wines Black Currant 2006 (14.1% ABV, sugar 1, $14.80) showed its intense cassis nature. The Meadow Lane Winery Black Currant NV (sugar 3, $10.95) gave it a run for its money.

Their Blueberry (sugar 3, $11.95) was fetching, but then I've never been a fan of blueberries in any form. Their Plum NV (sugar 4, $10.95) was more to my liking, with a great plum nose. Ocala Winery Heritage Apple 2006 ($9.95 litre) had fresh apples on the nose and the palate, and was good value for the price. Their Plum NV ($9.95 for 750 mL) had plums in the nose and palate, long length, a finishing acid, not very sweet, perfect as an aperitif. Pine Farms Hard Cider NV (7% ABV, dry, $5.60 for half-litre) was a good cider in a manageable format for one person. Their Macintosh Apple Wine 2006 (10.3% ABV, dry, $13.95) was also a winner, loaded with fresh flavours. Puddicombe Estates Farms Cranberry NV (10.4%, sugar 9, $15.20) was still refreshingly tart and full. The winery makes 32 different wines, including a Peach NV of good intensity and a Pear-a-dise (12% ABV, sugar 7, $18.10 for 750 mL) made from bosc, bartlett, and sugar pears. Rush Creek Orchards Pearfection NV (12.5%, dry, $10.25) showed remarkably good pear tones at this level. My fave pear wines come from Bartlett Winery (the owner's name, not the pear) in Maine; they make a variety of different styles of pear wines, from bone dry to fortified levels. Scotch Block Elderberry NV (11.5% ABV, sugar 1, $12.95) was a useful fruit wine, stressing the elder fruit. Their Raspberry Rouge NV (11.5% ABV, sugar 1, $14.95) was very good, off-dry in tone, lots of body. Scotch Block also makes a series of currant wines, specifically Regal Red Currant NV (11.5%,

sugar 1, $12.95), Regal White Currant (11.5% ABV, sugar 1, $12.95), and Regal Black Currant (11.8 ABV, sugar 1, $12.95). They would be terrific to have at any kind of blind tasting. Scotch Block Strawberry Fields NV (11.5% ABV, sugar 1, $11.95) showed ripe flavours, sweet aftertaste, but finishes in a dry mode. As I said, I'm not a fan of blueberry but I was blown away by the finish on their True Blue NV (11.5%ABV, sugar 1, $14.95). Sunnybrook Farm Estate Ironwood Hard Cider (6% ABV, off-dry, $13.15 for a six pack of 341 mL) was very fresh. County Cider Company makes a County 2000 Champenoise NV, a cider made on the traditional champagne method, from ida red, northern spy, and macintosh apples (8% ABV, sugar 1, $19.95 bottle) is certainly something many fruit wineries can aspire to. The mousse was superb, the nose all bready. My fave raspberry wines come from Hoodsport and Paul Thomas in Washington State

(both for the bone dry wines) and Barghetto's Chaucer in California for the off-dry raspberry. But after tasting today's fruit wines from Ontario, I can safely say that I'll be pulling my Yankee dollars and spending my fruit wine budget money at home..."

The Wines: Today's tasting was of some 45 wines, about a third of the number I tasted eight years ago. But from fewer wineries as sadly some no longer exist. Wines are normally bottled and sold in 750mL unless otherwise stated. My notes are from my experiences alone, and do NOT reflect the WWCC, and are NOT an average score of the tasting. We had three separate flights: one flight for the ciders, one flight for the 750 mL bottles which were mainly around SC 2 in sugars, and one flight for the dramatically sweet or iced styles, SC over 5. This way we could pace our palates...

"Wines, Beers and Spirits of the Net" is a guide to thousands of news items and RSS feeds, plus references to wines, beers and spirits, at www.deantudor.com since 1994. My LCBO tastings are based on MVC (Modal Varietal Character); ratings are QPR (Quality-to-Price Ratio). Prices are LCBO retail. Only my top rated wines are here. NOTE: The LCBO does NOT put out all of the wines of the release for wine writers or product consultants. Corked wines are not normally available for a re-tasting.

NOTE: It is getting more difficult to endorse wines under $20 for the simple reason that the LCBO does not release many of them into the Vintages program, ones that can be deemed to be worthy of your consideration. So I will now just ADD some "under $25" suggestions, along with point values.

FIND OF THE MONTH!!

Le Pere Jules Pommeau de Normandie AOC, +402131, $39.95 for 700mL: Formerly known as Pommeau Ste. Anne, this AOC has apple cider syrup blended with Calvados. Le Pere Jules is aged in oak barrels for more than 5 years. There is a strong "cider apple" aroma that follows through on the palate, a sort of intensified cider taste. The finish is smooth, suggesting that the one-year old Calvados has been aged smoothly. Aperitif or with dessert or post-dinner. QPR: 93.

8.Castellani Chianti Riserva 2010, +970707, $14.95: now over four years old but rustic and vibrant in life with typical MVC of sangiovese from approved Chianti regions. Deftly done and affordable. 12.5% ABV. QPR: 89.

Restaurants should consider offering these FINE VALUE wines at a $10 markup over retail; the wines are READY to enjoy right NOW. Consumers should buy these wines to bring to restaurants with corkage programs.

Monday, March 2, 2015

1.Jackson-Triggs Entourage Grand Reserve Series Brut 2011 Methode Traditionelle VQA Niagara, +234161 $22.95: very much one of the bargain sparklers in Ontario at this price level. The 2008 was one of my faves, and the 2010 (with more pinot noir, three years en tirage, and a red tinge, like a rose) hit a 94 on my taste scale recently. The 2011 is back to regular straw colour. It has been aged over two years en tirage, very crisp on the palate, somewhat tart but may improve with age. Refreshingly crisp with typical yeasty nose, nuts, creamy vanilla, and a long long length. Good pinot noir character. 12.5% ABV. Quality/Price rating is 90 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures.

2.KWW Roodeberg 2012 South Africa, +7187, $12.45 LCBO: when I first had this wine, it was 1968 or so, and it cost 10 times less. It was good value because it was strong and minty even then. Today, it is 14.24% ABV with a twist top, and instead of a pinotage blend, it is a cab sauv/shiraz/merlot mix for 82% of the total. Expect vanilla, some plumminess, dark brooding colours and palate, plus good acid for food. Decent price too. Quality/Price rating is 87 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures.

3.Burnt Ship Bay Pinot Grigio 2013 VQA NOTL, +404939, $14.95 LCBO: a relatively new player in the Ontario wine sweepstakes, Burnt Ship has already signed up the Hockey Hall of Fame as a provider of house wines. In February, this wine became available at the LCBO: think peaches and lemons and apples, with some serious tones on the midpalate. Commingling is back, with citric undertones. Prize winner from All Canadians and Intervin. Twist top, 12.5% ABV. Quality/Price rating is 88 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures.

5.Burnt Ship Bay Chardonnay 2013 VQA NOTL, $14.95 Winery: with apples and pears, other orchard fruit plus lemons and citric tones, the wine has plenty of definition. It tastes unoaked. Good for patio/deck/balcony, and first course fish dishes. It won an Intervin Award for Honors and Best Value. 13% ABV, twist top. Quality/Price rating is 87 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures.

6.Le Pere Jules Pommeau de Normandie AOC, +402131, $39.95 for 700mL Vintages March: Pommeau de Normandie (formerly Pommeau Ste. Anne) is made like Pineau de Charentes (grape mistelle and cognac) – some apple cider mistelle blended with one-year aged Calvados. Then it is aged in oak barrels for more than 5 years. There is a strong "cider apple" aroma that follows through on the palate, a sort of intensified cider taste. The finish is smooth, suggesting that the Calvados has been aged smoothly. This is a great aperitif (as the company says) although it is sweet enough to put out with dessert or just post-dinner. Pommeau arrives in Ontario every three years, so snap this one up (fewer than 50 cases in the system). Quality/Price rating is 93 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures.

7.Mark Andrews Knappogue Castle Single Malt Irish Whiskey, +223776, $62.95 Vintages: arriving just in time for St. Paddy's Day, this is a 12 year old Irish nicely aged in used bourbon oak casks. No colour has been added, so there is a naturally light lemon-orange colour, also suggesting some citric tones. The spiciness includes coconut and honeyed tones from both the bourbon and the oak. It was first introduced in 1998 and relaunched in 2010 as a medium bodied, off-dry very polished whiskey in the super premium category. Triple distilled, of course, with an ABV of 40%. Quality/Price rating is 90 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures.

8.Tenuta Balbia Greco Bianco Malvasia SX.E 2013 IGT Calabria, +386995 LCBO, $12.95: a good basic fresh and fruity wine, somewhat like muscat in its orange-peachiness. 12% ABV makes it a social wine, perfect before dinner as aperitif or with a salty first course such as soup. New to the General List. Quality/Price rating is 88 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures.

9.Gnarly Head Viognier California 2013, +396416, $17.95 Vintages: a limited release to Vintages, this wine is aromatic but on the dry side, perfect as a social wine or for first course. Expect peachy and orange tones, but of course no oak. Nicely produced.

Quality/Price rating is 89 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures.

10.Casar de Burbia Godello 2011 Bierzo Spain, +368381, $16.25 Vintages: Godello is indigenous to the up-and-coming Bierzo region, and may soon be its most prominent white grape. It is firmly in the Muscat family style of peaches, tropicality, orange-citrus, certainly compares favourably with the Viognier reviewed above. Here is is slightly off-dry but with a long finish. Aged on its lees for eight months, 13.5% ABV. Suitable for aperitif or social wine or even with a first course. Quality/Price rating is 89 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures.

11.Casar de Burbia Mencia 2010 Bierzo Spain, +392530, $19.95 Vintages: another indigenous grape variety on the rise from Bierzo – it's dark fruit and floral MVC, coupled with 8 months aging in US oak, gives it some smokey quality in a Rhonish tone. Even with some jammy and mocha nuances, the wine exhibits some savoury herb character, perhaps making it better with food rather than as a social wine. 14.6% ABV. Quality/Price rating is 90 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures.

Sunday, March 1, 2015

3.GATHERINGS; bringing people together with food (Whitecap, 2014, 318 pages, ISBN 978-1-77050-226-0, $34.95 CAN paper covers) is by Jan Scott (former event planner) and Julie Van Rosendaal (cookbook author). Currently, both are heavily involved in family nutrition writing, appearing in the national media and in Toronto and Calgary respectively. Here the idea is the family table to sit around and eat. The range is from casual weeknights to special occasions and weekends, with the emphasis always being "gathering". There's material on party planning and catering your own event. The arrangement is by occasion:weekend brunch, showers, pie party, pantry party, birthday party, BBQ, pizza party, snow day, plus a dozen more. Many recipes can be interchangeable if you dig around. The 100 preparations have their ingredients listed in both metric and avoirdupois measurements.

The downside to this book: the typeface for the ingredients is very faint and can be hard to read.

The upside to this book: there is a menu and ideas for a book club gathering.

Quality/Price Rating: 87.

4.WINTER GRILLING (Whitecap, 2013, 160 pages, ISBN 978-1-77050-249-9, $29.95 CAN hard covers) is by Tom Heinzle, an Austrian grill specialist. Here he expounds on winter BBQ, which features such as boar, hare, turkey and duck. There are also recipes for seasonal sides and desserts. It is a basic book, but you don't need to freeze while grilling outside. Just grill some other time. There are 46 preps plus six more desserts (grilled apples, figs). Winter equipment is explained. There is NO index (a major fault) but the preps are listed in a table of contents, and have titles such as "beer-can duck", "wintry spare ribs", "chicken with hay", and "lamb shoulder" which are self-explanatory. It is an interesting book, but also with too many photographs. Heinzle concludes with a glossary. Preparations have their ingredients listed in both metric and avoirdupois measurements.

5.SHEET PAN SUPPERS (Workman Publishing, 2014, 296 pages, ISBN 978-0-7611-7842-3, $15.95 US paper covers) is by Molly Gilbert, cooking instructor and recipe tester for Saveur. Her idea is a spin-off of the one-pot. Here, it is the sheet pan and the oven. She's got 120 recipes for complete meals, snacks, brunch and dessert. Just choose one method: roasting, broiling or baking. They all intensity flavours. She's got a sheet pan primer

for foil, parchment paper, and oven knowledge. Preparations have their ingredients listed in avoirdupois measurements, but there are tables of metric equivalents.

Audience and level of use: those looking for quick and easy new treatments.

The downside to this book: some of the preps are standard issue roasts and bake, so nothing really new here.

The upside to this book: good idea for another cooking technique, and best when coupled with a slow cooker and/or blender for those cooks who appreciate "one" item to clean up.

Quality/Price Rating: 87.

6.THE DASH DIET YOUNGER YOU (Grand Central Life & Style, 2014, 252 pages, ISBN 978-1-4555-5454-6, $26 US hard covers) is by Marla Heller, RD and a clinical instructor in nutrition at University of Illinois, She has authored many DASH diet books; this is her latest. The DASH diet (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) has been recognized as the best diet overall by several reputable sources, but it might be stretching it a bit to say (as the publisher does on the front cover) "shed 20 years and pounds in just 10 weeks". I can see the pounds, I cannot see reversing the aging process. DASH is still a good diet although here it seems to have moved on from its "hypertension" roots. There's an emphasis on colour on the plate, eliminating sugars, eating more plant-based foods, doing a detox, and avoiding agribusiness and pharmacy. It is all good healthy food in this book, along with menus for several different time frames. She concludes with many charts, including a useful food serving tracker, a Body Mass Index chart, and details on calcium-rich, potassium-rich, and magnesium-rich foods. Eat as much of these as you can/

Preparations have their ingredients listed in avoirdupois measurements, but there are conversion tables of metric equivalents.

7.THE PLAN COOKBOOK (Grand Central Life & Style, 2014, 214 pages, ISBN 978-1-4555-5653-3, $26 US hard covers) is by Lyn-Genet Recitas who wrote the bestseller, The Plan. It is an anti-inflammatory nutritional protocol. Some material from the first book is necessarily repeated here, but I should think that you would not need both books. If you are indeed interested in The Plan, then this is the book, with all of its recipes. The Plan seems to have helped people lose weight fast and forever by discovering which food work for their unique body chemistry. Her preps are supposed to boost your energy and cut inflammation, as well as make you lose weigh. It is a lifestyle change. Preps cover all meals, from breakfast through salads, soups, sides, apps, sauces, dressings, mains, and desserts. Preparations have their ingredients listed in avoirdupois measurements, but there are tables of metric equivalents.

Audience and level of use: those searching for anti-inflammation diets and lifestyle changes.

8.HAND MADE BAKING (Chronicle Books, 2014, 207 pages, ISBN 978-1-4521-1230-5, $29.95 US hard covers) is by Kamran Siddiqi, a food writer and recipe developer. Here he's got an eclectic collection of some 55 preps, ranging from classics (cream scones and brioche) to some innovatives (pistachio polvorones). He's got a lot of fun and ease in his style, great for young people, to provide enthusiasm and confidence. He begins with breakfast goodies, moves through pies and lunches, and then tackles cookies and the tea times, ending with cakes and breads/biscuits. As a true baker, his recipes are scaled with metric and avoirdupois measurements.

9.PUCKER (Whitecap, 2014, 214 pages, ISBN 978-1-77050-227-7, $29.95 CAN paper covers) is by Gwendolyn Richards, food writer (Calgary Herald) and blogger. It's a book meant for those who love the sour taste of citric acid through lemons, limes, grapefruits, and some sub-varieties such as Meyer lemons and key limes. She covers the sour (pucker) side, leaving alone pomelos, citrons, kumquats, oranges, tangerines, mandarins, and sevilles. She's got a hefty section on drinks and apps, followed by soups, sides, mains, desserts, and breakfasts. Preparations have their ingredients listed in both metric and avoirdupois measurements, but there is no table of metric equivalents. About 92 recipes all told, most of them illustrated with colour closeups.

The downside to this book: I was disappointed that only one recipe used orange juice and only one used orange blossom water.

The upside to this book: great photographs.

Quality/Price Rating: 87.

10.QUENCH (Roost Books, 2014, 204 pages, ISBN 978-=1-61180-128-6, $24.95 US hard covers) is by Ashley English, who has written several food books (A Year of Pies, Handmade Gatherings, Keeping Bees among others). Here she concentrates on thirst-quenching drinks, with 100 recipes for natural sodas, fruit nectars, tisanes, shrubs, kombucha, bitters, liqueurs, wines infused liquors, party punches, and more. As the subtitle indicates, these are "handcrafted beverages to satisfy every taste and occasion". Her book is about evenly divided between soft drinks and hard drinks. The soft drinks are either invigorating or comforting in style. The hard drinks can be festive, warming or spirited. That's how she's got them arranged, with detailed indexing at the back. Her gin toddy calls for ginger tea; my gin toddy just calls for hot water and bitters. There are enough variations throughout the book to satisfy all. Wine is pretty well limited to seasonal sangrias, mulled wines, and "vin maison". All the preps here can be labeled "social drinks" and should have instant appeal for parties or crowds. Preparations have their ingredients listed in avoirdupois measurements, but there is no table of metric equivalents.

Audience and level of use: those looking for something different; millennials